Yarn-feeding device for knitting machines



Sept. 9, 1930. H. L. TRUDEL E L YARN FEEDING DEVICE FOR KNITTING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet. 1

Filed July 23, 1914 Sept. 9, 1930. TRUDEL ET AL 1,775,333

YARN FEEDING DEVICE FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed July 25, 1914 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 mwzmw I Patented Sept. 9, 1930 i UNITED STATES PATENT -HENBY L. rennet-Ann HOWARD .B. DAWSON, or IPSWICH; MASSACHUSETTS, As-

SIGNORS, BY mnsnn ASSIGNMENTS, ro scorrr CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS orrica i & WILLIAMS, INCORPORATED," A

YARN-FEEDIN G DEVICE FOR KNITTING MACI HIN 'ES Application filed m 23,

Our invention relates to improved devices cooperating with the needles and other adjuncts of circular knitting machines such as knitting machines organized to knit a stocking having a high spliced ankle and'splice-d sole.

One object of our invention is to provide for the entrance and exit of the splicing yarn at a predetermined point at'the respective sides of the tube kni I i We have shown our devices applied toa machine. of the character-shown in the atents to J. D. Hem hill, N 0. 935,981 October 5, 1909, and No. 9 3,443, September 7, 1909,

known to'the trade as the Banner automatic machine, to which patents reference should be made for a complete understanding of the entire machine.

In the accompanying drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a part of a machine according to the disclosure of said patents;

' Fig. 2 is a detail of cams on the cam shaft showmg, the cams for controlling thesplicing Fig. 3 is a plan viewof the knitting head;

Fig. 4 is an internal development showing the latch guardring, the cam ring, and the needles; I v Fig. 5 is a vertical section on a radial plane through the top center cam.

In said machine, yarn is fed to the needles through an opening or throat 17 5 in the latch guard ring 17, at the wave formed in the needles by cams carried by the cam ring 6.

Three or more movable spring actuated yarn guide levers 18,,19 and-20 are pivoted on an axis above and outside of the circle of needles? 7 Secondary levers 181, 191' and 201 for the yarn guide levers '18,, 19, 20 are moved to elevate them to remove the yarn from its operative' position by cams 24 on shaft 12 act ing on levers 23 connected by wire links 232 to the outer ends of said levers 181, 191 and 201. Levers 18 and 19 are employed for the leg of the stocking and for the heel and toe respectively, the lever 20, which may be any one of said levers being an auxiliary feeding device" specially actuated by lever 201 for the 1914. Serial No. 852,609.

splicing operation'by means of a cam 241 placed on the cam shaft to bring it into action above the ankle of the stocking, while the machine is still upon circular work, and again after the operation of narrowing and Widening. On the rotating main shaft 11 a cam 59 having a high part and a low part cooperates with a bell crank lever 60 actuated by descend, the bell crank lever 60 will be thrown i against the cam 59, to actuate yarn guide lever 20 twice during each revolution of the machine to allow the splicing yarn to be taken by the needles during substantially one-half of a revolution.

. The upward and inward movement of the inner end of a yarn guide lever when actuated to change the yarn or to take out of work an additional yarn/Which has been knitting,

carries the yarn thus rendered idle above and to the inside of the circle of needles, Where it is cut, and retained by an internal guide "1100 and clamp 101, occupying a position comrespect to the heads of paratively low wit the needles and the'latchring 17, so. that a yarn guide permitted to resume its lower position will insert its yarn between needles at or near the topcenter cam 10.

We may provide our machine with a de-' vice such as that shown generally at 140 for cutting and clamping the splicing yarn near a the point at 'which it leaves-the fabric, as described and claimed in our application Serial No. 735,120 filed December 5, 1912.

This device comprises a clamping member.

which when in position receives and holds the yarnat a point near the plane of the tops of the needles advanced to take yarnat the stitch cams, and at a point following the yarn A guide in the direction of rotation of the needles for circular work. v

The above described devices rely upon the time of the actuation of the yarn guide complete figure of the cam 10. The leading lever 201 with respect to the rapidly moving needle cylinder to effect the entrance and exit of the splicing yarn carried by said lever at the points desired to form the boundary of the spliced area. ance of the stocking depends upon the accuracy with which this entrance and exit is effected, error in the operation leaving ragged and variable margins which are undesirable in the article.

In order to render the entrance and exit of the yarn accurate with respect to apredetermined entrance needle so that the splicing shall begin at the Wale from that needle, and the exit accurately at a predetermined needle so that the spliced area shall end at the wale from that needle, we take advantage of the presence in the machine of the series of needles n having long butts and needles n having short butts. The spliced area preferably corresponds to the short buttv needles n employed for knitting the heel and sole of the stocking.

Referring now to Fig. 5 the top center cam 10 in our improved device is cut away at 105 to form a flat, which is related to the cam group as shown in Fig. 4 so that needles passing along said fiat will nevertheless pass under the following stitch cam 8 to be actuated.

The channelpr cut in' the camlO is of sufficient depth to pass the short butt needles n, but the full triangular figure of said cam remains to contact with and actuate the long butt needles n. Referringnow to Fig. 4 it will be seen that the yarn guide 20 delivers its yarn to the needles at a point between the point corresponding to the lower apex of the camlO and the point at which the needles come under the influence of the following stitch cam 8. v

In the normal operation of the machine during rotary work all of the needles pass upward above the upper surface of the leading stitch cam 8, encounter the down-going face of the top center cam 10 and pass to the retracting face of the following stitch cam 8. i

By the described construction of the center cam 10 we secure a separation vertically of the long butt and short butt series during their travel from the lower faces of the cam 10 to the down-going face of the following cam 8.

The yarn guides are at such a position when active as to cause the yarn guide 20 to deliver a yarn to the advanced short butt needles, which are in a higher position than the long butt series fully retracted by the short butt needle will then'inevitably take the entering splicing yarn as the first of its series to take said yarn, which is not thrown to a position low enough to pass between The good appear-' ing yarn which hold said yarn in a different position from the other yarns the same behavior of the splicing yarn with respect to the advanced needles may be secured.

A similar separation of the long butt and short butt series occurs at the following end of the short butts and the leading end of the long butts, the splicing yarn sharply leaving the fabric at the last short butt needle, whereupon the splicing yarn guide is removed. The body and other yarns carried by the guides 18, 19 will enter the needles at any time upon being depressed.

The improved machine comprises a switch cam block 15 carrying the usual advancing cam 152 to take up the high butt needles only, and a depressing cam 151 to take down needle butts of any height.

The machine operates for all of its usual knitting functions without defect caused by the separation ofthe needles in the manner described at the top center cam.

What we claim is:

1. In combination in a circular stocking knitting machine, a main yarn feed finger, a circle of needles, one half of which are long butt instep needles and the other half of which are short butt heel and toe needles, all the long butt needles occupying one half of the needle circle and the short butt needles occupying the other half of the needle circle, a splicing yarn finger movable to and from feeding position and located in rear of the main yarn finger, needle cams, and a central guard cam of substantially V-shape having an upper surface for short butt needles extending substantially horizontally from side to side thereof, for dividing the short butt needles from the long butt needles, substantially as described.

2. In combination in a circular stocking knitting machine, a main yarn feed finger, a circle of needles, one half of which are long butt instep needles and the other half of which are short butt heel and toe needles, all the long butt needles occupying one half of the needle circle and the short butt needles occupying the other half of the needle circle, a splicing yarn finger movable to and from feeding position and located in rear of the main yarn finger, needle cams, and a central guard cam ofsubstantially V-shape having an upper surface for short butt-needles extending substantially horizontally from side to side thereof, for dividing the short butt needles from the long butt needles, said needle cams including retracting cams separatedfrom the ends of the upper path of the 'V-shaped guard cam, substantially as described. w

In testimony whereof, we have signed our names to this specification.

HENRY L. T-RUDEL. HOWARD B. DAWSON. 

